Mexican super middleweight Jaime Munguia is not resting on suffering the first defeat of his career against Canelo Alvarez.
Munguia went into his May clash with the super middleweight king at 43-0, making his most significant paycheck when losing over twelve rounds in Las Vegas. Since then, Munguia has gone against the grain of Canelo victims, who take time out of the ring following defeats to the Cinnamon one.
Billy Joe Saunders, Liam Smith, Callum Smith, Jermell Charlo, Sergey Kovalev, and others saw their careers stall after picking up a sizeable purse opposite Canelo.
No sooner had Munguia lost than he announced his return in September. After beating Erik Bazinyan, Munguia will take on France’s undefeated Bruno Surace three months later.
Top Rank confirmed Munguia vs Surace as a ten-round main event set for Saturday, December 14, at Estadio Caliente in his hometown of Tijuana, Mexico. The return marks the fourth fight of 2024 for Munguia, who is not content with sitting on his money.
“I’m very happy to be back in the ring and, above all, to be back in Tijuana,” said Munguia. “This year has been full of hard work and great fights, which has only motivated me to keep pushing forward.
“I want to give Tijuana a great night of boxing and thank everyone there for always being by my side and supporting me. It won’t be an easy fight, but we’re confident we’ll come out on top. Viva Mexico and Viva Tijuana!”
Now 44-1, 35 KOs, the former super welterweight champion is still only 28 and has time on his side to be a contender at 168 again.
Opponent Surace is unbeaten in 25 bouts with two draws to his name. The 26-year-old will fight outside France for the first time. He returns after 2023 wins over Milos Jankovic in May and then-unbeaten prospect Jhon Jader Obregon in December. However, his lack of knockouts means Munguia is happy to continue easing back to the top.
Munguia never challenged for a middleweight title before moving up to 168. Therefore, gaining another shot will become imperative in 2025.
Munguia vs Surace and undercard bouts will stream live and exclusively in the U.S. on ESPN+.
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Read all articles and exclusive interviews by Phil Jay. Learn more about the author, experienced boxing writer, and World Boxing News Editor since 2010. Follow on Twitter @PhilJWBN.
